Magical Moments: A Special Issue
by luinrina
Summary: Once again the four most mischievous boys Hogwarts has probably ever seen have been caught when executing a prank. The consequences? A detention. But they never saw this detention coming…
1. Prologue: Not the Everyday Detention

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the beloved Marauders; neither am I in any possession of the teachers and other characters involved.

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– prologue –

**Not the Everyday Detention**

'You know, this is entirely your fault!'

'What? Why me? You're the one who had the idea for the prank!'

'You were the first to say that we should prank him!' James Potter argued.

'Since when do you need me to tell you who deserves a prank?' Sirius Black shot back.

It was as per normal. James Potter and Sirius Black, infamous sixteen year old Gryffindors, would think of a prank and look for the person to be the victim, or decide that a student (or sometimes a teacher) was in desperate need to get pranked. Their friend, Remus Lupin, would occasionally provide them with useful charms to get the prank working, and Peter Pettigrew… well, Peter had once or twice thought up a prank, too. He mostly supported them, though – in whatever they needed help in.

The boys' favourite victim was, by far, a student of Slytherin House, Severus Snape. Everyone knew that the Marauders and Snape just didn't get along. And this was proven by James one day:

'It's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean.' (**Note**)

This time they had pranked Severus Snape, and like many times before, they, as the culprits, had been caught. Receiving a detention was the appropriate punishment for such actions, but none of the boys knew what kind of detention they were actually going to face this time. They at least reckoned that it couldn't get too bad. After all, Filch, the caretaker, once had them clean the toilets with toothbrushes. That had been the worst detention they had had to endure in their entire school career so far. Any other detention could only be half as bad – at least that was what the boys always hoped.

They had been standing in front of Professor McGonagall's office for some time, waiting to be called inside, when James and Sirius had started arguing. But before their discussion morphed into a catfight, Remus stepped in-between them. 'Guys, done is done. She caught us, we have a detention set. So forget your argument of whose fault it is. It's not going to change our current situation.'

Both black-haired boys shot their friend a look that yelled '_Traitor_!', but, with simultaneously sagging shoulders, they stopped their quarrel.

'Sorry, Moony, we got a bit carried away there.'

Remus raised his eyebrows. 'Carried away _a bit_?'

James grinned sheepishly. 'Or maybe a little bit more than just a bit.'

'Ah…'

Suddenly the door, in front of which they waited, opened, and their Transfiguration teacher and Head of House stood on the threshold. She sternly looked at the four teenage boys over her square-framed glasses for some time before she stepped aside and bade them entrance. Slowly they did as ordered.

The office was relatively big in comparison to the other professors' offices, mainly due to the huge bookshelf standing against the left wall, filled with various tomes, some thicker than others. The walls of Professor McGonagall's office were painted in a cool ivory. No one would have known that the strict teacher was Gryffindor's Head of House if it wasn't for the red and gold coloured scarf hanging on the wall behind the big mahogany desk.

'Have a seat, gentlemen.' The professor waved her wand, and four neat looking chairs appeared out of thin air in front of her desk, behind which the professor sat herself down. When the four boys were seated, she passionately began, 'I despise your actions on Mr Snape, as you all very well know. Never before have I seen such a nasty incident.' She shot each of the four boys a threatening glare. 'What could possibly possess you to charm Mr Snape's cauldron like that? He could have been seriously injured.'

A murmur that sounded suspiciously like 'Sure, Siriusly' came from the boy seated at her left. Professor McGonagall had heard it although the black-haired boy had spoken in a very low voice.

'Mr Black, this is _nothing_ to joke about. The potion to create Bulbadox Powder is very difficult to concoct and can get wrong easily. But I daresay you didn't even think before you acted in this childish manner.'

James tried to explain. 'Professor, see, we were actually supposed to brew the Draught of Living Death –'

'And you think that would have been better? Mr Potter, I –'

She didn't continue though. Instead, she clasped her hands over her heart. Apparently, the imagination of what could have happened alone was enough to let her fall speechless for a moment.

'You should very well know that when the Draught of Living Death is consumed, you fall into a deep slumber that it is very difficult to wake from.' The boys nodded. 'Then, I ask you, why? What was the point of getting Mr Snape's cauldron to explode?'

'Actually,' Peter spoke up and received a glare from James which he ignored, 'we charmed the cauldron so that it would sneeze and spit back the ingredients that Snape added.' The boy's voice had dropped with every word until it was a mere whisper.

The silence that followed was tense; one could have grasped it with their fingers.

'I am disgusted, boys. Absolutely disgusted. To even come up with such a nasty idea…' She shook her head. 'And then you sit here and don't even regret your despicable actions? But, Merlin forbid, none of your previous detentions have done anything to make you feel regret of any sort. Over and over again you're causing mayhem with your so-called "pranks".

'The headmaster and I have therefore thought of another punishment. It is different from anything you've done before, and although you might think it lax and low, it definitely is not.' She shot each boy a long, meaningful look over the rim of her glasses and then continued, much calmer. 'I therefore urge you to put your every effort into it. You must work for at least two hours daily to let it count as your detention. Every minute above that is counted as your private time you choose to spend on the task. And it is asked that you do this detention _properly_.'

The boys threw each other questioning glances. What Professor McGonagall had told them sounded like a lot of work, although she had not yet clarified what they were exactly going to face.

'Err, Professor,' Sirius tentatively asked after a few moments of silence, 'what exactly are we supposed to do? And how long will it take?'

'You're not allowed to call the detention finished before Miss Vance says so.'

'And the detention task is…' James pressed, but Peter gulped audibly next to him. One quick side-glance at his friend told James that it wasn't going to be as easy as they had hoped.

'You're going to assist Miss Vance in writing this month's issue of the school newspaper.'

The smile on Professor McGonagall's face was lost upon the boys when they gaped at each other in shock.

--

Peter knew that, without a doubt, Emmeline Vance was a good student. And she was a brilliant witch. But he also knew that she was the very stern chief editor of _Magical Moments_ – Hogwarts' very own school newspaper. Emmeline Vance was even known to be sterner than Professor McGonagall.

The detention wouldn't be an easy getaway by any chance, and it was indicated right away the very next day when the editorial staff held their regular beginning-of-month meeting.

'All right, everyone, here it goes,' Emmeline Vance spoke up when everyone was assembled in the Transfiguration classroom which was used as the editorial staff's headquarters. 'First, I'd like to remind you of the importance of this month's issue. It's the paper's five year anniversary and it should be something special for the readers.' She halted next to the window, looked briefly around, then turned and walked back to the door. Emmeline usually paced up and down when giving out directions to her newspaper's team. The staff was used to her antics, but, to the Marauders, her pacing was rather irritating.

'I've already looked at your suggestions and ideas,' she continued, 'and I've found them all very interesting. I am positive that we can include them all, although some can only be included in a lesser extent than others. But the decision about which articles are going to be the issue's main focus we shall discuss later.' She turned as she reached the door and started her journey back to the window. 'All I ask for now is that every one of you should work on the ideas you suggested next to your regular topics and then hand the drafted articles in. I think two weeks should be sufficient.

'Oh, and before I release you to start working flat out, I have the _honour_,' she sarcastically exclaimed, looking at the Marauders as she passed them, an ironic smile playing around her lips, 'to say that for this month's issue we have gained the support of these four fine men, who _volunteered_ to help us with this month's issue.'

Some of the other students looked puzzled, others shocked, while a third group coughed out with humour. Not one of the editorial staff believed that the Marauders had enlisted of their own accords. Whispers about detention quickly worked the circuit, but they were silenced with a commanding wave of Emmeline's hand. She then turned to address the four boys.

'Black, you're going to work with Robert Clarkson. Potter, I want you to assist Penny Henderson.' James shot a look in the mentioned girl's direction and grinned at her winningly. She simply ignored this.

'Lupin, I entrust you with the readers' questions section. Tiffany, who's usually doing the job, has excused herself for this month.' Remus slowly nodded.

'And Pettigrew, I want you to help John Summer.'

She clasped her hands together. 'That is all for the moment. If there are no more questions today, we'll see each other the next meeting. Good day, people.'

--

'This sucks!' Sirius exclaimed vehemently when the four boys walked back to Gryffindor Tower after they had been dismissed. 'I can't believe we've got to invest so much time for this stupid magazine.'

'Newspaper, Padfoot, newspaper,' Remus corrected him quietly.

'Whatever.'

'What are you pondering over, Prongs?' Peter asked. James hadn't said a single word since they'd left the meeting room, and appeared lost in his thoughts. Even now he didn't give an answer; Peter turned to Remus and Sirius with a helpless look on his good-natured face.

They reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, and once Remus had given her the password – 'Billywig' – they scrambled through it and entered their common room. But instead of seating themselves in their favourite cosy armchairs by the brightly crackling fire, the four friends went directly up to their dormitory. It wasn't until Remus closed the door behind them that James spoke.

'I've been thinking.'

'Wow! That's news,' Sirius replied, grinning; he received a glare.

'Funny, Pads. But I think we can help this newspaper becoming a success, a _huge_ success.' His eyes gleamed mischievously.

Remus groaned. 'Prongs, we already have a detention set. No need to get us into another one before we have finished the current one we're stuck in.'

The black-haired boy dismissed this with a wave of his hand. 'Don't be so negative, Moony. My idea is failsafe.'

Peter snickered while Sirius sarcastically exclaimed, 'Sure. That's why we've received detention in the first place, because your ideas are "failsafe".'

Giving out another glare towards his best mate, James sat down on his bed and said, 'We'll bring something new in, something that they've never seen before.'

--

**Note:** Quote from _Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix_, chapter twenty-eight _Snape's Worst Memory_, page 570 (British edition, Bloomsbury)

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Thanks to my beta Azhure and Siriusly Mr Black for letting me write this story.

What do you think? Any comments are welcome. Thanks for reading and reviewing.


	2. Chapter One: James' Jury

**AN**** #1:** I don't think that the Mrs Norris we know from the books would have lived for all those years from the Marauders' time to when Harry first set foot into the school. That's why I've allowed myself the writer's freedom and made the cat a Miss Norris. ;)

**AN #2:** I know the wordplay of "Sirius" and "serious" is old and clichéd, but I like it and therefore I have included it. I hope you can forgive me my quirk…

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– chapter one –

**James' Jury**

'Do you think Miss Norris should wear a bow?'

'What?' the girl asked, surprised at being addressed out of the blue with such a random question.

'You know, a nice pink one between her ears would suit her,' the questioner continued and scribbled a few words down onto the clipboard he was carrying. He looked up at her again, and scrutinising her carefully, added, 'Don't you think she should?'

Dorcas Meadowes rolled her eyes, shook her head and side-stepped him. 'Potter, you're nuts.' Fastening the strap of her bag on her shoulder, she hurried away. Her friends had waited at the end of the corridor and now huddled around her, without a doubt wanting to question what James Potter had wanted.

'You need to approach them differently, Prongs,' Remus advised when he reached the place where his friend stood. He received a glare, which he took with a chuckle. 'Aw, is the famous James Potter offended?' he mocked.

'Thanks for your help,' James shot back, pouting, and then clamping the clipboard under his arm. Taking up his bag, he walked on, Remus following closely behind.

They walked in silence for some time before James spoke again. 'What do you suggest?'

Since Remus had waited for James to ask him for his advice, he had the answer already prepared. 'Don't scare them,' he said. 'You need to address them only when they see you coming towards them. This way they get a chance to be prepared. Jumping in front of someone to ask a random question without even saying hello or anything else is considered impolite.'

'Hmm…'

'Why not try to make it in a written form? You could always prepare a kind of questionnaire and hand it out. This way you can ask more questions, and get back a variety of answers and opinions. Maybe some will write down ideas of what to include or leave out.'

James said nothing for a while, pondering over what his friend had suggested. But then a question formed in his mind and he asked, 'Who's going to receive these questionnaires?'

'Well,' Remus thought while he and James turned into the hallway that led to Gryffindor Tower, 'you can hand them out personally in the common room or maybe during meals' time in the Great Hall. You could also display them – in the classrooms, for example, but this might cause trouble with the teachers. Possibilities are in the Great Hall, in the common rooms… There are many different places.'

'What about in the library?'

'Good idea. Should have thought of that myself,' Remus replied. 'But you should clarify your displaying with Madame Pince first. You know how she gets when anyone steps over the line she has drawn in her rules.'

'Yeah…' James vaguely replied. They had reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, and Remus gave the password while James asked, 'And how do I get the questionnaires into the other houses' common rooms?'

Remus was about to step through the hole but upon being spoken to he paused, turned around and ogled at James. 'You cannot be serious? You, of all people, should by now be able to pull this off, and yet you _ask_ _me?_' His voice vibrated with suppressed laughter. 'Prongs, I'm –'

But whatever Remus had wanted to say went lost when another person from inside the common room spoke up, 'Did I hear my name there? No one can be Sirius, because that's who I am.'

--

_Have you ever wondered how Professor Dumbledore would look without his long beard? Or what __Miss Norris would be like when wearing a fluffy pink bow? If you could answer the above questions with a hearty yes, then you should read on._

_Below there are going to be several question. I want you to read them and think about them. Do you agree? Or even disagree? Tell me your opinion. If the majority agrees to the questions,__ then I'll try to get this to happen._

_You can hand back the parchment by simply double-folding them, bewitching them with "Volaris retro" and voila, I'll get your opinions in an instant._

_But enough babble, here it goes:_

_1)Do you think Professor Dumbledore would look much better without a beard?_

_2)Do you agree that a trip to Hogsmeade should be allowed every Saturday?_

_3)What is your opinion on Miss Norris wearing a bow? It can be worn anywhere, and it can be of any colour (if you have suggestions of where this bow should be attached, and what colour it should be, then add them)._

_4)Do you think that to keep a dragon as a pet would be an enormous accomplishment for Hogwarts?_

_5)Hogwarts' ghosts giving private lessons – an impossibility of performance? Or something you've always dreamed of?_

_6)Should Professor McGonagall dye her hair? If yes, do you have any suggestions what would suit her?_

_And now the most important question:_

_7)Do you think Lily Evans should finally agree to go out with the very good-looking James Potter?_

_Thank you for taking some time to answer these world-shaking questions. And remember: "Volaris retro."_

Slowly, Remus let the piece of parchment sink into his lap. Dumbstruck, he stared up at James who stood next to his bed, grinning like a child for which Christmas had come early and had brought many good presents.

'So, any good?' the black-haired boy asked enthusiastically.

'Prongs… James…' Remus shook his head. 'Well… you know, when I suggested a questionnaire, I didn't think of…' he lifted the parchment and waved it in front of his face, 'I didn't think of _this_.'

'How else should I have written it? Oh, come on, Moony, it's good. Everyone will like it. They'll answer them.'

'And where did you get this spell from?' Remus asked out of curiosity when he browsed the parchment again.

'Well… you'd like to know, wouldn't you?' James replied cockily and snatched the questionnaire out of Remus' hand before the other boy could react. 'See ya! I'm going to hand these out now!' With a wink and a huge pile of parchment questionnaires stacked under his arm, the dark-haired boy left the dorm, leaving behind an even more dumbfounded Remus Lupin, who could only sigh and hope that his friend was not going to make a complete fool out of himself.

--

Two days later, after a wearisome Quidditch training, James entered the dormitory he shared with his three friends to find Sirius and Peter sitting on the floor, surrounded by many pieces of parchment. 'What the he—' he began, but was interrupted by Remus who stepped into the circular room after him.

'You should have seen it coming, Prongs. With that spell of yours…' he trailed off when he received a glare. Remus chuckled; his friend seemed to distribute glares frequently and very freely in the last days.

'Oi, Prongs!' Sirius greeted them then, having just noticed their entrances. 'That's an interesting read. Who's written that?' He waved with a bunch of pieces of parchment clutched into his fist.

James sighed and dropped his broomstick next to his bed, then sank tiredly onto the soft mattress. 'That would be me.'

'You?' Peter asked and looked up, staring at James. 'Is this for your detention part?'

'Correctly guessed.'

Remus sat down too, and now asked, 'Can you read something aloud, Padfoot?'

Sirius grinned and picked one piece of parchment that lay a little way apart of the rest of the pile, he smoothed the wrinkles out and began to read in a voice that clearly suggested how much fun he thought it was.

--

_Changes__ – Open Your Door To Something New_

_Whoever said changes are not men's best friend is mistaken. Everyone needs a change from time to time. With a change you can alter a dull, grey everyday situation into something colourful, something that catches your eye and heart and says, "This is what life should be: a wonderful rainbow of happiness."_

_Men are creatures of habit. We like fixed times for meals, we have a failsafe way of how to deal with stress and huge amounts of work. But do we have fun in life? If you can answer this question with a hearty yes, then you don't need to read on because the following article won't tell you anything new._

_But if you are part of the majority that can't claim to live a varied life, then you'll find your answers here._

_To make__ a change, you need some courage, something to overcome the jump over your shadow._

_As you are all very much aware__, there were questionnaires handed out on which various questions about possible changes to Hogwarts and life in the castle were phrased. Many of you have taken the time to answer them, and I am now in the lucky situation to present you the results to questions that will enormously affect our regular days._

_We all know that our beloved headmaster, Professor Albus Dumbledore, (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, and member of the International Confederation of Wizards), wears a long silver-white beard which__'s tip is tucked into his belt. He seems fond of it, but __**do you think Professor Dumbledore would look much better without a beard?**__ Many of you answered with a yes. And since this is a special issue, I will talk to our headmaster in person to suggest to him to take off his beard. We all agreed that he would look much better without it, so I will take this as a basic when approaching him on this matter._

_To leisurely walk through the village on a beautiful day with friends, visit the Three Broomsticks to homely sit and drink warm, house-made Butterbeer, chat with the lovely barmaid, Madame Rosmerta, and in the evening return with bags full of colourful and varied-tasted sweets – this all makes a perfect trip to Hogsmeade. But these trips are much too rare. Therefore, __**do you agree that a trip to Hogsmeade should be allowed every Saturday?**__ Again, the majority agreed, and, in service of my fellow students and friends, I shall suggest this matter to Professor Dumbledore in the private meeting as well._

_**What is your opinion on Miss Norris wearing a bow?**__ Now, this question seemed to have resulted in a discussion. Several of you agreed and suggested that a fluffy pink bow between Miss Norris' ears would look lovely. However, other students argued that Mr Filch wouldn't be in agreement with this change. My dear fellow students, the change is what makes our lives worth living, and although Mr Filch might not be agreeable at first, I think he'd realise fairly quickly that a fluffy pink bow is an enormous improvement to the appearance of his beloved tabby cat. Unfortunately, since the majority rejected this idea, I won't be able to address it with Mr Filch. It was your collective opinion, and however much I'd like Miss Norris to alter her appearance, I will have to respect it._

_Everyone knows Hogwarts' motto: _Draco Dormiens Tunquam Titillandus_ – Never Tickle a Sleeping Dragon. But how can we know that this motto is correct? No one has ever seen a dragon personally, or have you? To teach us this motto could be a trick of the older generations to keep us away from dragons. But why should they do so? Simply because we could find out that dragons aren't the dangerous creatures they are described to be. I mean, just ask our own Rubeus Hagrid. He swears that dragons are loveable, harmless creatures that are vastly misunderstood._

_So do you agree there? __**Do you think that to keep a dragon as a pet would be an enormous accomplishment for Hogwarts?**__ Again, many have answered with a yes, and I shall therefore – in accordance with your wishes – talk to Professor Dumbledore about getting a dragon as Hogwarts' pet._

_Several of you suggested __that we should get a dragon's egg rather than a full-grown one. I agree; looking after the egg until the baby dragon hatches could be taken as a project or class lecture for Care of Magical Creatures. Hagrid himself has offered to take care of the little beauty, take over the responsibility of feeding and providing the dragon with a lovely home to stay safe while it prospers and grows. We all will be the dragon's family, and everyone is surely excited to have this special sibling among our midst._

_**Hogwarts' ghosts giving private lessons – an impossibility of performance? Or something you've **__**always dreamed of?**__ Here the majority didn't answer. Apparently no one ever considered a chance of being lectured by souls that have long since departed mortality. It is a pity, but I'll respect the majority's wish, although I want to add that Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington would have loved to teach us all about his lifetime of experience._

_I admit that the next question wasn't an easy one. __**Should Professor McGonagall dye her hair?**__ Here, too, many have declined, stating the opinion that our Transfiguration Professor's hair looks perfect the way it is. But again, I want to remind you that we need courage to overcome our fears of change. I would have very much liked to take on the task and ask Professor McGonagall to dye her hair…_

_Life without a change is dull – this we __already know. But love is as important as a change to bring colour into a grey day. Yet, love doesn't start with only one person having feelings for another one. To love, two persons are required. And believe me when I say, my dear fellow students, I am in love, so much so that it hurts to see her walk by and not be able to convince her that, deep down, she feels the same for me. I therefore asked you about your opinion with the question: __**Do you think Lily Evans should finally agree to go out with the very good-looking James Potter?**_

_But alas, despite my good-will intentions__, some of you mean harm to me. Quite some replies contained words like: "I don't care", "not my way to decide" or "Potter, get over it". I was hurt, deeply to my heart._

_However, thankfully there were some students who agreed that the lovely and beautiful Miss Lily Evans should give it a try and accept my offer to go out with her. Since the majority of responses wanted to see this situation to happen, I promise hereby that I will ask her out on the day this newspaper is going to be published._

_Once again, dear fellow students, think about changes in your life. They don't have to be big or world-shaking; it's the odds and ends, the details that can make the difference._

_Thank you for participating in answering the questions._

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Thanks to my lovely beta Azhure. -hugs-

Thoughts, comments? Please leave a review. Thanks!


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